300-hp, manual-only GR Corolla is Akio's love letter to U.S. enthusiasts

[Hagerty]

Remember when Ford decided the Focus RS wasn't worth it anymore? And Subaru decided an STI might as well wait for the impending electric revolution? Toyota just showed them both up. Welcome to the long-awaited GR Corolla, a 300-hp, manual-only love letter from Toyota to U.S. hot-hatch enthusiasts.
https://www.hagerty.com/media/news/2023-toyota-gr-corolla-hatch-reveal/

[bradfa]

The Core trim seems to explicitly say it will have 5 person seating but info on the Circuit Edition doesn't clearly state how many seats it will have. Any info on if the Circuit Edition will in fact have a back seat or what kind of back seat?

[bblhed]

A safer bet would be a 2+2 configuration. Do you want to sit three across in that car, I know I don't?

[Grace]

confirmed with Toyota PR: Circuit Edition will have the same five-seat configuration as the Core model.

[tarpatel]

let's see how bad the dealers screw up the sales experience for the early car buyers. They behaved terribly with the Zupra launch in my neck of the woods.

[MeJ]

I like it. Looks like a fun little car. A car that you could probably beat on mercilessly without worrying about something breaking. Because, Toyota.
I am a little surprised that it weighs as much as a C6 Corvette though.

[bblhed]

That C6 was pushing out 400 pony's in base configuration, although I suspect some have escaped the barn over the years, so on paper it should be a faster car. In reality I think it would be a lot closer between stoplights or on a dragstrip given the traction advantage of the Toyota, around a track I think the Corvette would be out suspensioned all other things being equal and with the extra ponys, we are talking 20 years of suspension updates.

[Grace]

in defense of the curb weight: it doesn't get the benefit of fiberglass bodywork, and it's gotta hold all that AWD hardware.

[MeJ]

I agree, it's just the Corolla is so small compared to a C6.

[espo70]

Looks like after 2 decades of boring, Toyota is finally starting to make (or badge) interesting cars again. Unfortunately, it's likely going to be too expensive for most buyers interested in the hot hatch market.

[bblhed]

Toyotas look boring, no reason to believe they drive that way. I have a Scoin that can sit at 4,000 RPM's all day and not complain, trips to the redline don't even phase it. Not amazing in the corners but pretty good even with cheap tires, and it can go all day at 80 MPH like a good commuter car should.

[bblhed]

That is 98.73642 cubic inches pushing out 300 horses! That is just over 3 Horsepower per cubic inch and that is done with five less pistons than most people here think are required to make it a real engine. This will make an interesting toy for the boy, and girl, racers out there.

[Tinkerah]

1618 Cubic inches? (From one of the captions) I'll take two!

[Geschwindigkeit]

"If you had told us, back in 2018, when the Focus RS was ripping around the streets of North America, that one day Toyota would build a WRC-engined, all-wheel-drive screamer with 48 more horsepower and a pair of locking diffs, we’d not have dared to hope."

Might still have to dare to hope, as alas, the Focus RS was equipped with a full-on 350hp; it's the FWD Focus ST that had 252. Not that I'm complaining...

[Grace]

thanks for your sharp eyes there ... addressed!

[drhino]

Wonderful. Manual only! No posers allowed! The Core model (while not pretty) is not horribly “boy racer” in appearance. Love the 60 series tires and the ability to buy without the “tech package”. Good Heavens; it’s like someone actually has payed attention. Big question: how does it work? Specifically, steering feel.

[Grace]

we're asking that same question right with you!

[Gary_Bechtold]

The regular corolla hatch had to me non-existant rear seats. I'm not tall and when I put the seats where I was comfortable the passenger behind me would have to lose their legs.

Having said that they built an STI level car when Subaru said nope, not going to do it. Kudos to Toyota for doing it. This car makes more power than the base Zupra 2.0 4-cylinder with one less cylinder. Further shame on the BMW parts-bin Zupra.

[seinfeldbasslin]

well i just put a deposit down on a circuit edition... guess we will see how bad the dealers gouge people. worst case scenario, they get a nice lawyer letter, and i get my money back. we shall see! very exciting stuff and im glad toyota has decided to fill the void that subaru (and mazda for that matter) has left.

[CitationMan]

My dealer is not taking deposits but I’m first on their list for a Circuit Edition, for whatever that’s worth. When I visited the dealer early this week, they were unaware of the GR Corolla, which doesn’t surprise me. We shall see if I can get it a MSRP. I’m not optimistic.

[seinfeldbasslin]

since making the above comment, the first dealer i left a deposit with came back to me and said, oh, actually we also need you to sign this purchase agreement.. which had a 5k mark up built in! I laughed, said i would not sign it, and found another dealer who promised me MSRP on a circuit. i will deal with getting that deposit back this week, probably just call my cc and dispute the charge lol

[CitationMan]

Too funny! I saw online that they will produce 1500 of the Circuit Edition in 2023.

[Rick2]

I only buy two doors. Come on Toyota.

[danhise]

Just called and got on the waiting list. I have a 2014 Focus ST and did not expect that anything else would ever come along to match or overmatch the joys I've known in driving it, but now it looks like it's going to happen. I'll turn 80 in November; it would be a helluva birthday present to myself.

[avanti5010]

By the looks of the pictures it is burning a lot of rubber which is a waste of power. It needs Nissan's Attesa all wheel drive system.

[avanti5010]

As far as power per cylinder, Nissan gets 600hp out of 6 cylinders. So 300hp out of 3 cylinders is no big deal.

[Al]

You had me until I saw it was 1618 cubic inches!

[LarryD]

Hagerty's not uncommon trend of allowing some typo's through seems alive and well in this article. Pretty sure the tire size will be 235/40x18 (I've read it elsewhere). 235/60x18 is a pretty big tire (OE on the Audi Q5 and the Ford Maverick pickup for instance). Cool car, though I too would question the Toyota dealers ability to market it properly.

[Grace]

guess you got a sneak peek into our first mods... fixed, thanks!

[CitationMan]

What I really like about this car is that Toyota is all-in on the performance equipment, no compromises. In the past with most manufacturers, there would always be something missing, or the horsepower numbers would be a disappointment. Because of Toyota’s commitment, I’m confident this is going to share most of the driving characteristics of the GR Yaris. If you want to see how special that car is, watch the videos from Chris Harris on Top Gear, or from Harry’s Garage. Harry Metcalfe actually bought one after his initial video with the press car.

[ConfuciusRacing]

Matrix on steriods?

[Rider79]

Ugly rat.

[Grace]

fast rat!

[ratfink]

Hell yeah!!

I'd buy one